Synthesis of mussel-inspired polydopamine-gallium nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Aim: To established a simple, controlled and reproducible method to synthesize gallium (Ga)-coated polydopamine (PDA) nanoparticles (NPs). Materials & methods: PDA NPs were synthesized in alkali medium with posterior Ga shell formation due to ion chelation on the NP surface. Results: The obtained results with energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy confirmed the incorporation of Ga on the PDA NP surface. The cytotoxicity of Ga-coated PDA NPs was evaluated in vitro at different concentrations in contact with human adipose-derived stem cells. Further cell analysis also demonstrated the benefit of Ga-coated PDA NPs, which increased the cell proliferation rate compared with noncoated PDA NPs. Conclusion: This study indicated that Ga could work as an appropriate shell for PDA NPs, inducing cell proliferation at the analyzed concentrations.

Gallium nanoparticles as novel inhibitors of Aβ40 aggregation

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been consistently related to the formation of senile amyloid plaques mainly composed of amyloid β (Aβ) peptides. The toxicity of Aβ aggregates has been indicated to...

Formation of gallium nanoparticles by thermal evaporation method

The conditions have been developed for obtaining of gallium (Ga) nanoparticles by thermal evaporation method in an argon atmosphere on glass carbon substrates. Ga particles research was carried out by the developed intelligent analysis method of the images of the micrographs obtained under a scanning electron microscope. It is shown, that temperature of glass carbon substrate and the condensation time of the melt determine number of the nanoparticles and microparticles. Ga nanoparticles with 10 – 100 nm sizes and microparticles with up to 500 nm sizes were formed on the substrates with the condensation time of 10 – 20 s. Ga nanoparticles had a shape close to spherical, and their amount increased with the increase of the condensation time. The increase of the substrate temperature from 118 to 124 °С provided the decrease of 20 % in the average sizes of most Ga nanoparticles and the increase of their number by a factor of 7 – 20.

GALLIUM NANOPARTICLES AS DELIVERY SYSTEM AGAINST INFECTIOUS DISEASES AND CANCER

As viruses, microbes, other pathogenic microorganisms and toxic agents are responsible for global broad spectrum diseases including cancer and malignant hypercalcemia, resulting significant mortality and morbidity, nanobiotechnology-based nanoparticles are being emerged as new nanomedicines for their biological applications owing to their unique shape, size and ease surface functionalizations. To overcome drug resistance and toxicity, gallium (Ga(III)) metal nanoparticles (GaNPs) have attracted attention for their requirements for prolonged treatments, especially, against human immunodeficiency virus, mycobacterium, hypercalcemia and cancer. These nanoparticles remain stable for the longer periods owing to the formation of native and passivating 2-3 nm oxide layer. Therefore, it is needed to encapsulate the NPs with bioactive compounds within vesicular system associated ligand-binding for specific delivery to target-sites for getting better efficacies. This review depicts especially the role of GaNPs as delivery system against infectious diseases and cancer.

Optical Scattering of Liquid Gallium Nanoparticles Coupled to Thin Metal Films

We investigate experimentally and numerically the scattering properties of liquid gallium nanoparticles coupled to a thin gold or silver film. The gallium nanoparticles are excited either directly by using inclined white light or indirectly by surface plasmon polaritons generated on the surface of the gold/silver film. In the former case, the scattering spectrum is always dominated by a scattering peak at ∼540 nm with a long-wavelength shoulder which is redshifted with increasing diameter of the gallium nanoparticle. Under the excitation of the surface plasmon polaritons, optical resonances with much narrower linewidths, which are dependent on the incidence angle of the white light, appear in the scattering spectra. In this case, the scattering spectrum depends weakly on the diameter of the gallium nanoparticle but the radiation pattern exhibits a strong dependence. In addition, a significant enhancement of electric field is expected in the gap region between the gallium nanoparticles and the gold film based on numerical simulation. As compared with the gallium nanoparticle coupled to the gold film which exhibit mainly yellow and orange colors, vivid scattering light spanning the visible light spectrum can be achieved in the gallium nanoparticles coupled to the silver film by simply varying the incidence angle. Gallium nanoparticles coupled to thin metal films may find potential applications in light–matter interaction and color display.